Come Home
by MKat98
Summary: InuYasha and Kagome have been separated during the quest for the Shikon Jewel. She's gone back home, and he can't stand not having her by her side. And even though she won't admit it, she can't stand not being there for him. SONGFIC, maybe somewhat OOC.


**Disclaimer: Not mine. Belongs to OneRepublic and Takahashi Rumiko, and whoever they're affiliated with.**

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**Come Home**

_Hello, world, hope you're listening.  
Forgive me if I'm young or speaking out of turn.  
There's someone I've been missing,  
And I think that they could be the better half of me.  
They're in their own place, trying to make it right,  
And I'm tired of justifying…_

InuYasha, for all his drama, knew he was young and immature. No matter how much he tried to convince himself otherwise, he knew there was much he had yet to learn about love, kindness, affection, and everything in between. But who could teach him?

The obvious answer to that was a woman. But who? InuYasha used to think it would be Kikyo, but now he wasn't so sure. He thought he had loved her, but had he really? When he had seen her come alive again, made of bones and gravesoil, his thoughts were not that Kikyo had returned. His foremost thought was worry for Kagome. Only then did he allow himself to pine after Kikyo.

When Kikyo periodically met up with InuYasha and his companions, InuYasha always felt a slight pang of relief that she was alive. But when it came time for her to leave, he never did anything more than was absolutely necessary to attempt to convince her to stay. He asked, she refused, he asked again, she refused again, he begged halfheartedly, she refused yet again, he accepted her inevitable departure, she left. That was their routine, and it hadn't changed.

When he thought Kikyo had died again, he was devastated, yes, but he got over it pretty fast. Of course, he would still jump at rumors, but he never actually actively sought her for too long. If there was no concrete evidence she had been there, he would leave. Sometimes, it felt as though he was only doing this to keep up appearances, or that he no longer loved Kikyo, but a shade of her former self. Kikyo's death certainly hadn't hindered him on his quest.

But Kagome, on the other hand…

How did he describe her? InuYasha knew he loved her as well, and it might have been, at the beginning, because she looked like Kikyo.

But Kagome possessed a spark that Kikyo just didn't. When Kagome had to return to her world for some time, even for just a few days, InuYasha felt a mellow calm settle over his life, a reminder of the gaping hole that only Kagome could fill. He would stare at the well through which she had disappeared for several minutes before shaking off the oncoming depression and returning to Shippo and the rest. And if she wasn't back within a day or two, he had to fight the urge to go after her and make sure she was alright.

And whereas Kikyo always put InuYasha before everything else, Kagome didn't have problems with not making him her first priority. She wasn't afraid to let InuYasha know exactly what she thought, without thinking whether or not it would hurt his feelings. When she used the beads around his neck, she didn't care that it hurt him. When she rushed into battle, it was because InuYasha probably wasn't doing well enough on his own, not because she felt she had to save him or something. And her whiplash tongue provided some welcome wit in his relatively dreary life. Kikyo was just too innocent, too pure, too caring to lash at InuYasha the way that Kagome did. She just didn't have that fire of youth and rebellion that burned so brightly in Kagome.

And yet, InuYasha had to wonder whether he only loved Kagome as a new and improved version of Kikyo. Who was really the best for him? Who was he meant to choose? How could he tell when both had their strengths and weaknesses? Both there, ready, waiting for him to decide.

InuYasha really had no clue. But for now, he'd take it at face value. There was time for deeper soul-searching in the future. And either way, it was Kagome who had sacrificed everything to be at his side, not Kikyo. Kagome was undoubtedly the stronger of the two, for she could see her love turn to another for what she herself offered, and not break of sadness. He deserved to give her a chance.

But she wasn't there for him now. She had returned home, after another fight they had had. She wanted to go back to her family periodically, and InuYasha wouldn't, _couldn't_, let her. She hadn't returned yet, even though it had been almost a week. InuYasha tried to tell himself it was okay, that there was a perfectly valid reason. Maybe she had a test, or she had gotten sick, or she had wanted to spend time with her friends, or her family wanted her to stay a little longer. But there was another thought, niggling in the back of his mind. _Maybe she just didn't want to see him again_.

But he needed her.

_So I say to you,  
Come home, come home.  
'Cause I've been waiting for you  
For so long, for so long.  
And right now there's a war between the vanities,  
But all I see is you and me  
And the fight for you is all I've ever known.  
So come home._

InuYasha lay sprawled on Kagome's bed, waiting for her to return. It was time for her to go back to his world with him.

The door opened and Kagome entered. When she saw him, she let out a cry of surprise. "InuYasha? What are you doing here?"

InuYasha sat up. "You need to come back," he said. "The Shikon Jewel isn't going to repair itself, you know." _Idiot!_ he said internally. _You were supposed to tell you _wanted_ her back! Not spout some half-ass remark about the Shikon Jewel!_ But in for a penny… "It's been a week, Kagome. I need you there." Well, at least it wasn't a _total_ loss.

Kagome went to sit at her desk. "Go ask Kikyo or something. I'm not coming back. Not even for Naraku."

InuYasha steeled himself for what he was about to say. "I…I don't want you to come back for Naraku. I couldn't care less about him. To be honest, even when I'm fighting Naraku, I can only think of you. Please come back?"

Kagome stiffened, back still turned to him. "I don't know, InuYasha. I've been away a lot lately. I have so much to make up in school, my friends are starting to get suspicious of my excuses, and I really miss my family. You'll be fine without me. You have to. Besides, the Shikon Jewel is almost complete. You don't need me. I'll think about it," she said quickly, cutting off the protest InuYasha was about to make. "But I can't make any promises."

_I get lost in the beauty of everything I see.  
The world ain't half as bad as they paint it to be.  
If all the sons, all the daughters, stopped to take it in,  
Well hopefully the hate subsides and the love can begin.  
It might start now.  
Or maybe I'm just dreaming out loud…_

Kagome walked slowly down the path. The sakura blossoms were in full bloom, and the trees formed a sort of canopy over her head. The faint scent of the sakura flowers drifted through the air, and she breathed in deeply. It was places like these that gave her hope for the corrupted world she lived in. This path was one of the few places she knew of that had escaped the cruel destruction of humankind. She often came here to escape, because here she could pretend that this world was just as pure as InuYasha's world.

And that was the problem, wasn't it? InuYasha. But Kagome could wait to think about him. She could enjoy the beauty of the trees a little while longer.

She saw a young child crying loudly, and its mother attempting to quiet it. Kagome shook her head sadly, pity shining in her eyes. Couldn't these people see the gift of peace offered in this sanctuary?

Didn't they realize that Mother Earth was sending the world a message? A message of hope and peace and kindness and goodwill towards all. If only the people of Earth could open themselves to receive the message. If only the mother and her child could hear, see, _feel_ the love throbbing so violently in the very air enveloping them.

Kagome almost marched over to the pair and told them to be quiet. She almost yelled at the child to shut up and just _listen_. She almost forced the mother to be still and try, really _try_, to take in the message Mother Earth was sending. But the woman must have seen something in Kagome's eyes, because the next instant, she picked up her child and scurried off.

Kagome watched her leave sadly. Another opportunity to spread Mother Earth's love, lost.

_But until then,  
Come home, come home.  
'Cause I've been waiting for you  
For so long, for so long.  
And right now there's a war between the vanities  
But all I see is you and me  
And the fight for you is all I've ever known.  
So come home._

Kagome reached the end of the path and turned onto the adjoining street. The blaring horns of the cars around her roused her from her thoughts. She sighed. She guessed she couldn't put it off any longer. After all, she'd have to think about him later, if not sooner.

Him.

InuYasha.

What was he to her, really? She loved him, she knew that. But did he love her back? How could she know she wasn't just some replacement for Kikyo? Could she invest her entire being into loving him if he didn't?

As she was thinking, a stray dog came over to her and licked her hand. She crouched down next to it to stroke its fur. For a stray, it was surprisingly well groomed. After a moment, she stood up to leave, but when she began walking away, it followed her. Well, she thought, she could think just as well with a dog following her as she could without. She lost herself in thought once again.

InuYasha was sweet, really he was. And when he wanted to, he could be very kind. But he was so stubborn and bull headed, too! He would never learn, never! Every time he went into battle, and yet he didn't think about Kagome. What would she do if he died? Perhaps her friends were right. Maybe she did deserve better. But what was 'better'? Koga? Hojo? If Hojo was the best she could do, she was pathetic.

No, InuYasha was the best choice. In fact, if she was totally honest with herself, he was the _only_ choice. Kagome had never known or felt love before, because she had never had InuYasha before. She had waited over 15 years for him, and when he had finally come to her, she knew almost immediately that he was her soul mate.

But then there was the constant worrying. The worrying that maybe, Naraku, his lackeys, the minor demons they always seemed to exorcise, the fights between InuYasha and all their enemies, might get the best of InuYasha one day. The worrying that one day, InuYasha might not return. That one day, he may be caught in a fatal crossfire, and that she might be alone. Could she really return to that worry? Could she give herself over to that all-consuming fear for InuYasha's life?

Suddenly, the dog that had been following her barked and jumped at her, pushing her to the ground. Caught by surprise, Kagome couldn't break the fall. She thumped into soft grass just in time to avoid a baseball aimed for the space where her head had just been.

"Sorry ma'am!" a child said as he ran forward to pick up the ball. "Didn't see you there." In a flash, he was gone again.

Kagome looked down at the dog laying on top of her. But suddenly, it was no longer a stray. Suddenly, Kagome saw InuYasha laying there, on top of her, having pushed her out of the baseball's way. She could see every detail: his flowing cloak, his eyes darkened with anger and fear, his ears twitching, his hair lifting slightly in the soft breeze. She blinked to clear her eyes, for surely it was a hallucination, and to her relief, when she opened her eyes again, InuYasha had been replaced by the dog, panting away as usual. But she couldn't shake the image of InuYasha on top of her, protecting her from harm.

In that moment, everything became crystal clear.

"Oh," she said. "I get it. You're like a sign, aren't you? You're telling me that I should go back to InuYasha."

The dog just barked happily. Standing up, it raced away.

Kagome lost herself in thought once more as she headed home. There had never been a choice, had there? They were one, together, never separate, InuYasha and Kagome. InuYasha did what he did so he could protect Kagome, and as Kagome thought about it, she realized the same was true for her as well.

InuYasha and Kagome, together forever.

_Everything I can't be  
Is everything you should be.  
That's why I need you here._

InuYasha slumped against the well. What was happening to him? He was coming apart at the seams. He needed Kagome here to reassure him, to tell him everything would be okay. He needed Kagome to tell them what to do. He needed Kagome to counter his brashness, his tendency to rush blindly into danger. He needed her here to counteract _him_!

_Everything I can't be  
Is everything you should be.  
That's why I need you here._

Kagome sat against the well in the darkness, staring off into space. She couldn't do this much longer. No matter how much she tried to lie to herself, she needed InuYasha. She needed his warmth, his wit, his rudeness, his immaturity, and most of all, she needed his protection. She needed him to fill the gap in her life. She needed him to make up for the flaws in her character. She needed him simply to balance her out. For they were like puzzle pieces, InuYasha and Kagome.

_So hear this now,  
Come home, come home.  
'Cause I've been waiting for you  
For so long, for so long.  
And right now there's a war between the vanities  
But all I see is you and me  
And the fight for you is all I've ever known._

InuYasha stumbled through the dark into Kagome's bedroom. He cautiously made his way towards the sleeping figure on the bed and clamped his hand around its mouth. "Shh," he hissed. "It's me."

Kagome sat up. "InuYasha? What are you doing here?" she whispered angrily.

InuYasha swallowed and took a deep breath. "I had to see you," he started. "I couldn't wait for you to return any longer. I need you, Kagome. I need you so much it hurts. I can't think without you there with me. You're consuming me, all of me, and I just can't deal with it. I can't even concentrate on fighting Naraku, because all I can think about is that you're here, and I'm there, alone, and you're not coming back. I need you back, Kagome. I've been constantly fighting myself, asking if I should bring you back by force or not. And I decided to let you decide on your own. But I can't deal with it any longer. I can't stand not knowing if you're coming back or not. And I know now that if you don't come back willingly, I really will force you to. But please don't make me. Please, come back."

Kagome was silent for so long InuYasha thought she had gone back to sleep. But then she launched herself into his arms and said, "InuYasha, of course I'll come back. I wanted to tell you, I wanted you to know, I need you too. I don't think I could live without you there at my side. And deep down, I've always known it. It just took me forever and a day to figure it out. Take me back with you, I can't stay here a minute longer."

InuYasha smiled, a rarity in itself. "If you insist, how can I refuse?"

Quietly, the two crept out of Kagome's room and made their way to the well. They stepped up to stand on the rim and looked deep into each others' eyes. "I love you," InuYasha whispered to her, to make sure she knew.

"I love you too," Kagome whispered back, and InuYasha felt like he could fly. He turned back to the well, and could feel Kagome turning as well. Both could feel the sense of finality. They knew that this time, there was no coming back.

Hand in hand, they stepped into the darkness.

_So come home._

**FIN**


End file.
